‘A Golden Jubilee:’ Russellville Hospital celebrates 50 years meeting the health care needs of its community

As Bappa Mukherji addressed the crowd at Russellville Hospital’s 50th anniversary ‘Golden Jubilee’ ceremony Thursday evening, what the Java Medical Group CEO said about the hospital’s future far overshadowed his comments about its first half century.

“We’ve lost 50 rural hospitals since 2017. Not every community is fortunate enough to have the safety of its own hospital, Mukherji said.

“It’s an honor to walk these halls every day and see our people caring so much. There are 700 rural hospitals at risk today. We’re fortunate not to be one of them.

“This hospital was bought basically out of bankruptcy six years ago. Everyone wanted this hospital to survive. The risk was and is real but we have overcome that and will continue to provide quality rural healthcare for the residents of Franklin County,” he added.

Java Medical Group is the managing company for Russellville Hospital. The hospital is owned by DAVA Health, Inc., a Tennessee-based health care nonprofit that owns multiple rural hospitals.

Mukherji said the hospital’s most valuable asset is the people who work there and their daily efforts to make Russellville Hospital a special place for the community.

In the past six years, the hospital has added wound care, a sleep lab, expanded its surgical services and added clinicians to its team.

Mukherji also acknowledged one area where the hospital needs improvement and it will become a focus in the coming years.

“Russellville Hospital will continue to be a hub for acute care and we will expand our preventive care, something we need to do a better job of to help people,” Mukherji said. “We will increase the focus to help keep people from getting sick rather than just providing treatment afterward.

“A lot of people believe you have to leave Russellville to get quality health care. I assure you that’s not true. There’s quality health care right here if you’ll use it,” he added.

In a time where the futures of many rural hospitals are in peril, it was a proud moment for the management and staff of Russellville Hospital to hear those reassuring words as the hospital celebrates its 1975 opening in Russellville.

And the numbers of patients treated last year shows the ever-growing importance of Russellville Hospital for Franklin County. More than 9,000 patients were treated at the facility’s emergency room in 2024, with this year’s total expected to surpass 10,000, Mukherji said.

Russellville Hospital saw more than 25,000 outpatient hospital visits last year. And if you add patient visits with Russellville Hospital’s providers and clinicians, that number balloons to 220,000, almost seven times the population of Franklin County.

U.S. Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-Haleyville) presented a resolution read into the Congressional record recognizing Russellville Hospital’s accomplishments and significance in this community the past 50 years.

State Rep. Jamie Kiel (R-Russellville) followed by presenting Mukherji and Ware a copy of a resolution approved by the Alabama Legislature also honoring the hospital’s 50th anniversary.

Kiel (R-Russellville) recalls a phone call he received shortly after he was first elected to the Alabama Legislature in 2018.

“One of the first calls I got was ‘the hospital is about to be running on generators,’” Kiel recalled. “And I thought ‘is there a functional problem? And they said ‘no, they cannot pay their electric bill. They have not paid their electric bill and their electricity is about to be turned off.’

“And it is a remarkable turnaround in the last six years, Bappa and Chris, that you guys have been here. The appearance of the hospital, the reputation of the hospital totally changed in that six years. On behalf of the Alabama Legislature, I’m very proud to present a resolution to Russellville Hospital acknowledging the work you have done to turn this around,” Kiel added.

In conjunction with its 50th anniversary, the hospital’s recent renovations reflect management’s ongoing commitment to the facility’s future. Those renovations include a newly painted exterior, a stone-enhanced facade, updated signage and a new neutral interior palette.

The emergency room has received a new paint job and new flooring, helping to ensure a welcoming and modern environment for patients and staff.

In the always developing health care industry, Russellville Hospital will continue to be a trendsetter, its CEO explained in his final comments Thursday evening.

“The health care landscape is ever-changing. Our board and leadership team are dedicated to investing their time and money into our remaining on the front end of health care practices in this hospital,” Ware said.